Independent men’s fashion retailer Outfit78 is celebrating its first birthday at Chippenham town centre’s Emery Gate shopping centre this week.

The shop launched at the centre last March in the store formerly owned by much-loved fashion retailer Peter Emms, which served the local community for nearly 40 years. And now Aaron Gale, owner of Outfit 78 is hoping to improve upon this record.

He said: “We’re so pleased to have reached our first birthday here at Emery Gate. There are a lot of doom and gloom stories about the British high street at the moment but I think our success shows that there is still a place for shops like us that offer a variety of labels under one roof and a really personalised service that you don’t often see these days.”

Nicola Milne, centre manager at Emery Gate added: “We’re delighted that Outfit78 has not only survived but thrived in its first year. We pride ourselves in offering a home to a number of local independent brands and feedback tells us that this is a major attraction for our customers. We hope that this is the first of many years at Emery Gate for Aaron and the team.”

The success of Outfit78 is especially poignant for Aaron, who has been in remission from testicular cancer for four years. He concluded: “This year has been hard work, but it has definitely been worth it. We’ve loved getting to know all our customers and hope to get to know many more in the years to come.”

Outfit78 offers a range of designer menswear brands, such as Luke1977, Lyle & Scott, Gym King, SikSilk, Mish Mash & Kings Will Dream. They are located near Emery Gate’s High Street entrance in the centre of Chippenham.